Monday, February 23, 2015

Jadepunk

Before I talk about #Jadepunk , I need to make something clear. I game a
lot. Like, three to four games going at any given moment, and nearly always at
least one of the is powered by #Fate . It's certainly not the only game I play,
but if you were to ask me to run something for you tomorrow, Fate is what I'd
use. For me, it just clicks.

That said, I'm always on the look out for something to add
to my Fate games. Some new mechanic I can steal or idea I can use as a jumping
off point. I almost never use settings as is, and this is particularly true of
Fate. I never played Fight Fire, but I stole the fire mechanics and made them
zombies in my horror game. I never ran No Exit, but I used the ideas to write a
Matrix-ish game. I never Ran Atomic Robo, Diaspora, or Starblazer, but I used
bits and pieces of them all.

So, when I saw Jadepunk all I really wanted was the Asset
system. I missed the Kickstarter, so I got to see people raving about it in a
void, and decided then and there to use it for magic items in my Fate fantasy
game (which worked beautifully by the way).

Then I read it. Sure, it had the system I wanted to steal,
and it worked just like I had hoped, but it also had an incredibly interesting
story outline. It's not super detailed, but it gives you what you need for
inspiration, and in that way it works even better. I own Ptolus, and it's
great, but I don't need every little detail mapped out for my. I want enough to
put me in the world and make me want to create my OWN stories there. Jadepunk
does this in a number of ways.

First, I can't say enough good things about the art. I'm not
an art guy. My creativity doesn't go in that direction, and it's never been
super important to me, but the way it's inserted into the text draws me in.
Most of the pictures are small, sitting there in the margin, showing some small
glimpse of life in Kausao City. It doesn't always need to show a fight scene,
though those are there too and add some excitement, but some are just people
going about their lives, tinkering with devices, or showcasing something unique
to the setting. It uses hints of color to remind you that, in the end, it
always comes back to the jade. Not being an artist, I don't know if that's
exactly what I was supposed to get out of it, but for me it just works.

Next, there's the writing about the city itself. This comes
in a couple of flavors: little glimpses of fiction (that like the art just
serve to flash a little piece of this really neat setting in front of you), and
write ups for everything from jade and jadetech to nations and power groups.
The latter really impressed me because it would be so easy to overdo, but
instead it just gives me enough to get an idea about where to come from when
building plots and playing these NPCs, followed frequently by a little blurb
with some adventure seeds or aspects that tie it back to the game and give you
an idea how to use them in play.

Finally, there's the setting and how the players are
intended to interact with it. It makes no bones about presenting a unified way
to play. Sure, you COULD play it however you want, but it doesn't try to be
something for everyone in a single book. There are no qualms about telling you
that there is oppression that needs to be beaten back, people that need to be
saved, enemies that need to be dealt with, and goals that need to be
accomplished. I for one really appreciate this because the whole text paints a
single picture. It's a dark world, and you are meant to be a light within it.
The text talks to you as though you're already one of those heroes just waiting
for the chance to prove your worth.

Setting aside, the book is well written and clear. I had no
trouble opening it up and reading cover to cover, which is something I just
don't do with game books. It's pleasing to the eye, easy to read, and the rules
sections are well detailed so as to not leave the reader with a ton of
questions.

Rules-wise, the subsystems are excellent. I already
mentioned the asset system, which in my experience is fairly unique compared to
other Fate games. Dresden comes close, but Jadepunk is the only one that just
treats the rules as rules instead of trying to hand-wave everything. You pick
your asset, assign it properties from a specific list, give it flaws to keep
the costs reasonable, and then spend a set amount of refresh based on the total
cost, which is derived from the powers you chose. Straight forward, simple, and
intuitive. No guess-work. It has a cost based on its abilities and you pay it.
Same thing with Aspects, they are tied to specific things. Jadepunk isn't alone
in this, but it implements it well.

I'm not going to call it my perfect game or anything. I'm
not a fan of Fate Accelerated, and the professions Jadepunk uses in place of
skills definitely smack of approaches. This is totally a personal taste thing
though, and I totally own that. Some people love approaches, it's just not my
personal thing. Even this isn't a turn off though. They're implemented well
here, and If I decide I can't handle dealing with them it would be easy enough
to use a more standard skill system instead.

I'm not sure if this long-winded discussion will help anyone
but me, but for what it's worth I can't wait to jump right in to running the
game (as is, not stealing pieces) set in Kausao City. My players need a win.
They need a target t focus on, and a chance to do real good in game after too
much gray or worry about right vs wrong. Jadepunk is going to give me that.﻿